Kim Kardashian’s Early Delivery Due To Preeclampsia, Similar Condition Suffered By 'Downton Abbey's' Lady Sybil?

By Staff Writer | June 19, 2013 05:20 PM EDT

Kim Kardashian's five-week early delivery may have been due to preeclampsia, a medical condition marked by high blood pressure. Fans of "Downton Abbey" will remember that it was eclampsia, a similar condition, that killed Lady Sybil Crawley after she gave birth.

"The condition can cause complications for other organs," said Dr. Natalie K. Stevens of Upper East Side Women's Health, who is unaffiliated with Kardashian.

"Women could have headaches, abdominal pain, issues with vision, among other things."

Another symptom of preeclampsia is swelling. Kim tweeted several photos of her "pregnancy lips" and swollen feet throughout the end of her pregnancy, NY Daily News reports.

However, no sources have confirmed that Kim suffered from this medical condition.

To treat preeclampsia, doctors would have to "deliver the baby early," Stevens added.

E! News sources reported that the daughter of Kim and Kanye West weighed "under five pounds." The magazine reports that the baby is being incubated to regulate her body temperature.

Kim's sister Khloe Kardashian-Odom reassured fans about the premature birth by tweeting on Monday: "Mommy/baby are healthy & resting. We appreciate all of the love."

According to The Daily Beast, up to 8 percent, or 300,000, of pregnant or postpartum women develop preeclampsia, eclampsia, or a related condition in the U.S. every year. Roughly 300 women die, and another 75,000 women experience "near misses," or severe complications such as premature birth of their babies.

Eclampsia, a less common but related disorder that Lady Sybil Crawley suffered from in "Downton Abbey," is the medical name for seizures during pregnancy.